Neverwinter
Description The City of Skilled Hands, the Jewel of the North- many were the accolades once heaped upon Neverwinter. Then, almost thirty years ago, the city died. Minor earth tremors that had plagued the region for months were the precursors of the eruption of Mount Hotenow. A portion of that volcano's peak exploded with such force that lava and superheated ash poured across the city in an avalanche. Half of Neverwinter's population died in a heartbeat, the city's buildings razed. A great rift now known as the Chasm rent the surface where the shifting earth had pulled apart. Strange zombies roamed the land in the aftermath, their dead flesh turned to ash by the fires that consumed the city. Yet the people of the North have always been resilient. After the destruction, many who had fled at the first tremors returned. Opportunists and looters arrived. People began to rebuild. Lord Dagult Neverember, the Open Lord of Water deep, eventually arrived as well, along with an army of Mintarn mercenaries. Today, the city struggles back to life under the watchful rule of the self-styled Lord Protector.. 'Surrounding Area' The area surrounding neverwinter is now like a wild frontier where law is not far reaching at all and plots and intrigue abound! This section attempts to give you a brief outline of the surrounding area and what lies there... 'Neverwinter River: ' The bright water of the Neverwinter River runs warm throughout the year, a feature that helps to keep the city from being frozen in the winter months. When the cataclysm struck, dark ash choked the river for months before it began to flow from Neverwinter Wood through the city once more. Three bridges once spanned the river in Neverwinter the Sleeping Dragon, the Winged Wyvern, and the Dolphin, each sculpted in the form of its name. Of the three, only the Winged Wyvern remains largely intact. Mintarn mercenaries in the hire of Lord Neverember patrol it day and night, watching traffic to and from the northern portion of the city and guarding against threats from Castle Never. 'Helm's Hold: ' Once a small monastery and adjacent village dedicated to the deity Helm, the cathedral of Helm's Hold now towers above the town and surrounding lands that bear its name. The death of Helm saw the monastery fall into disuse, but the fortified town became a refuge when the Spellplague hit during the year following Helm's demise. Lord Neverember now exiles victims of the Spellplague to Helm's Hold for treatment, and his mercenaries guard the town. 'Port Llast:' This town was a great city in ancient times- the most northerly safe harbor on the Sword Coast whenever Luskan would fall to orcs or other evil forces. However, the rise of a relatively stable Luskan and ports farther north began to diminish its prominence. Then came the Spellplague, and with it the return of Abeir. The appearance of the new continent in the ocean to the west changed the tides around Port LIast, filling the harbor with silt and making Neverwinter an easier port to reach. With the docks of Port LIast failing and trade dying off, most ofits citizens have long since abandoned their homes or died at the hands of marauders. Now a ghost town, Port LIast is known as the realm of the evil sea goddess Umberlee and as a home to sea monsters. However, some say that this reputation is simply rumor spread by those who want to keep the secrets of the town to themselves. 'Neverwinter Wood: ' For generations, this dark forest has been shunned by most people of the North. That magic exists in Neverwinter Wood cannot be doubted, but its nature- and whether it exists as a force of good or ill-remains unknown. The forest holds many secrets, and even on its fringes, one feels a sense of unease. Humans have never logged in this area, and the orcs of the North have traditionally avoided it during their rampages. Only druids and Uthgardt barbarians dare to pass into the deep forest. The scars left by Mount Hotenow's eruption have healed with startling speed, and many new forces move within Neverwinter Wood today. The Netherese seek out the treasures oflost empires within its shadows, hunted by undead forces spawned in the Dread Ring. Eladrin from the Feywild also stalk the wood, returned to the world after more than a millennium of separation. 'Thundertree: ' This small town once stood at the edge of the wood. Its inhabitants made a living by harvesting windfall timber to ship downriver to the Neverwinter and beyond. Now the forest has overgrown Thundertree's abandoned and decaying buildings. Although the town survived the Spellplague largely intact, the ash zombies that arose after the destruction of Never winter overran it. As the dangers of Never winter Wood increase, the abandoned town and its unknown horrors are shunned. People Of Note Category:Neverwinter Category:Lore